Take Your Time, You Won't Get A Pass.

More and more schools are using social media to share their stories with their community stakeholders.  When Eric Lowe and I wrote Your School Rocks, part of our purpose was propose a compelling argument for why schools should use social media, and ways they could do it.

As the number of schools that use these powerful tools increases, we want to make sure we continue to give you tips so that it can continue to be a positive experience and you can be as successful as possible.

Tweets from the U.S. Department of Education began to flood my timeline this morning, and I could only wonder what happened.  It did not take too long to notice not one, but two facepalm moments (DeBois and apologizes).

 

Whether you are sending a tweet, Facebook update, or posting on Instagram, if it is coming from your school or district account, spelling matters.  Do typos happen?  Absolutely.  Especially when you are using a smartphone.  However, it is important to make sure you catch them before you publish those posts or tweets because they are coming from your school and people will not give you a pass.

1. You have to proofread.  Yes it will take you a few more minutes, but it will save you from some major embarrassment.
2. Autocorrect is not always your friend.  This is probably where I catch most of my mistakes.  I am not suggesting you disable this feature, but be aware this can change some things you didn't want changed.
3. Don't hit send/post/tweet right away.  You will see or capture a moment in a classroom that is truly amazing and you will immediately want to share it with your community.  That's great, but just slow down before you hit the button.  This is where many errors occur.
4. If you make a mistake, own it.   Just don't misspell your apology.

Ryan is the principal of Big Walnut Intermediate School in Sunbury, Ohio and co-author of Your School Rocks...So Tell People!  Dave Burgess Consulting.